


The Butterfly (Of Doom)

by somethingscarlet13



Category: Invader Zim
Genre: Bugs & Insects, Gen, Irkens don't like butterfiles, Silly, and that episode of spongebob about "wormy", my big headcanon that Zim is scared of (most) bugs, this was inspired by two things
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-02
Updated: 2018-09-02
Packaged: 2019-07-06 01:47:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15875949
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/somethingscarlet13/pseuds/somethingscarlet13
Summary: When Dib finds out Zim is scared of ants, he wonders if the Irken are scared of other bugs too. When he leaves a caterpillar on Zim's doorstep however, things don't go exactly as planned............or do they?





	The Butterfly (Of Doom)

It all started at the school cafeteria.

 

“Look at him, Gaz,” said Dib, never looking away rom Zim who was sitting two tables over, alone. “What kind of sick, twisted ways to take over our planet is he planning now?”

 

Over at his table, Zim quickly grabbed a cup and slammed it over something only he could see. He looked proud of himself for a moment, then noticed something else and went scrambling away in the opposite direction.

 

“What the hell is he doing?” Dib wondered aloud.

 

“Ants,” his sister replied.

 

“What?”

 

“Ants,” Gaz repeated. “They’re all over the cafeteria now that spring is starting.”

 

Dib watched as Zim left his table to go take other students cups, returning to his own to cover everything he could with them. 

 

Dib could hardly believe it. Zim was afraid of ants. 

 

_ Did this fear extend to other bugs? _ He wondered.

 

There was only one way to find out.

 

****************

 

For Zim, Earth was already bad enough without the bugs. He didn’t like them. When he had taken Gir out to the park the other day to keep up appearances, there had been a big green bug on a leaf who’s huge eyes had stared right into his soul. He had left immediately, but it was days later and he was still having trouble getting the bugs intense gaze out of his mind. It haunted him. 

 

“Look what I found!” sang Gir as he skipped into the kitchen and presented Zim with a jar.

 

Inside the jar was a fuzzy-looking orange worm thing. A bug. Zim’s antenna went flat against his head and two of his PAK arms lifted him up and away. “Get rid of it.”

 

“Awww, but he’s not doing nothing!” insisted Gir. “Look, he’s even kind of cute!”

 

“I don’t care,” insisted Zim. “Go put it back where you found it.”

 

“But I found it on the front doorstep! It’s a gift!”

 

“I want it out of the house right now!”

 

“Awww, but he can’t hurt you as long as he’s in here!”

 

That was a fair enough point. Still ready to flee at a moment's notice, Zim carefully lowered himself back down to the floor and looked inside the jar.

 

The fuzzy orange thing was inching along a stick. Zim had to admit that it  _ was _ kind of cute.........

 

“Let’s set him free!” cried Gir, and lifted the jar above his head, ready to smash it.

 

“ _NO_!” screamed Zim and grabbed the jar away before the little robot could do anything. 

 

He looked inside the jar again. The bug was munching on a leaf. Zim decided it could stay. For now. 

 

********************

 

In three days time, Zim was completely attached to the fuzzy, orange bug. 

 

He took it with him everywhere and talked to it endlessly. He told it all about his home planet, his mission, and the Tallest. Upon telling his new friend about his leaders, he decided that they, too, should experience the joy of having what Zim had dubbed as Jeff. It took a few days, but soon Zim found a second Jeff and sent it to Purple and Red. 

 

Zim even took Jeff to school with him and talked to him during lunch. Jeff’s presence even kept Dib away, who seemed very angry and kept muttering about something “not working” and how his “plan had failed”. Zim paid him no mind now that he had Jeff. 

 

Then, just as quickly as Jeff had entered Zim’s life, he was gone.

 

Zim woke up one morning to find that Jeff was nowhere to be seen in his jar. Just dirt, sticks, and a brown leaf remained. 

 

“Gir,” Zim called deeper into the house, “Have you seen Jeff?”

 

“Nope!” came the chipper reply. 

 

Maybe Jeff had gotten out? That woud have been a problem before, but now that Zim knew Jeff better, he didn’t mind if his little orange friend got out to explore some. 

 

He took the lid off the jar, leaving it open on the kitchen counter. “Ok Jeff, I’m leaving your door open so you can return anytime!” Zim announced to the empty room loudly. “I’m going to school now. I’ll see you when I get back!” And with that, he left.

 

******************

 

Thoughts about Jeff kept Zim distracted all day during school. When it was finally over, Zim raced home to check Jeff’s jar. The brown leaf that had been in there that morning was gone, but that was it. Jeff was still missing. 

 

Zim was more afraid than he’d like to admit. What if something horrible had happened to Jeff? What if he was gone for good? What if---

 

Zim was snapped out of his thoughts when he saw it.

 

It was big and colorful and coming right for him.

 

The things wings were covered in multi-colored patterns that Zim could tell was war paint. It came right for him, and with a cry the little Irken ducked out of the way just in time to see the thing land on the rim of Jeff’s jar and rub it’s two front legs together like a cartoon villain.

 

The truth hit Zim like a bag of rocks to the gut. 

 

This creature, this  _ monster _ , had eaten Jeff!

 

“MURDERER!” screamed Zim, lifting himself up by his PAK legs and jabbing one at the monster. 

 

The colorful warrior flew away from long metallic leg and off into the house. Zim scuttled after it, enraged.  

 

“YOU WILL PAY FOR YOUR CRIMES!” sheriked Zim, once again trying to stab the little nightmare with one of his extra legs.

 

Again the creature flew out of the way, only making Zim that much more angry.

 

Zim chased the butterfly around the house before once again ending up in the kitchen.

 

The butterfly leisurely made its way to the open window above the sink, but before it could escape, Zim slammed it shut.

 

“I’ve got you now,” growled Zim, raising one PAK leg and impaling it through the bugs abdomen so hard that it also broke through the glass of the window behind it. 

 

Now that it was dead, Zim retracted his PAK legs and took the dead butterfly to the bathroom, where he unceremoniously flushed it down the toilet. 

 

The threat had been taken out and Zim prided himself on a job well done. 

 

Now that he had nothing else to do, he could call the Tallest and---

 

Panic shot though Zim. The Tallest! Would another assassin come for their Jeff? He had to warn them! 

 

Racing to his layer, Zim called the tallest right away, waiting nervously for them to pick up. They had to pick up, they just had to!

 

Zim’s call was answered, but the Tallest were nowhere to be seen. Instead, the sight before Zim’s eyes was that of total and complete chaos. 

 

Irkens were running around in a panic, screaming and crying. Things were on fire. Zim could hardly believe it. Where were his leaders?

 

The Tallest finally stumbled into view, neither of them noticing Zim’s call and instead looking all around in fear.

 

“Where is it? Where did it go?” asked Purple, shaking. “I’m scared, Red.”

 

“We’ll find it, Pur,” replied Red, equally as shaken. “The ship is only so big, it has only so far before someone finds it.”

 

Zim gasped in horror as another assassin, a perfect clone of the one who had murdered his Jeff, flew into view and landed delicately on Purple’s head. 

 

Red froze. “Pur......” he whispered, reaching slowly for something heaving and flat. “Don’t........move.........”

 

Quick as a wink, Red brought the object down upon Purple’s head, killing the monster. Zim watched, as did Red, as it fell to the floor, dead.

 

Rubbing his injured head, Purple asked hopefully, “Did you get it?”

 

Red heaved a huge sigh of relief. “Yeah. Yeah, I got it. It’s over.”

 

“It’s over everybody!” Purple announced to the still panicking Irkens, calming them. 

 

“I swear, if I ever see Zim’s face again I’ll--” Red began through gritted teeth. He stopped short, noticing that Zim had called. 

 

He and Purple had never looked so infuriated. “ZIM!” screamed the Tallest angrily. 

 

Zim’s antenna drooped and he gave a nervous chuckle and finger wave. “Hi.”

 

Oh boy. He was really in for it now. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm thinking of doing an entire series of Zim with bugs, what do you guys think?
> 
> Ideas include, but are not limited to:  
> 1\. Zim sees two mantis (or some other Irken-looking bug) and thinks they're the Tallest and starts doing whatever they do.  
> 2\. Ants get in Zim's house and he flips out and has to solve it somehow.  
> 3\. All I can picture is Zim seeing a rolly polly roll up into a ball and being fascinated and trying to do the same thing himself.  
> 4\. Zim sees a ladybug or beetle and thinks that, like him, it wears a PAK.  
> 5\. Zim seeing a spider and going "hey I can do that too" and walking around on his PAK legs.


End file.
